St. Louis’ Sam Bradford is in his third year; Detroit’s Matthew Stafford, Tampa Bay’s Josh Freeman and the Jets’ Mark Sanchez are in their fourth season; and the graybeards of the group, Atlanta’s Matt Ryan and Baltimore’s Joe Flacco, are in their fifth year.

Of that group, only Locker sat for his first season. The clipboard-carrying apprenticeship that used to be mandatory for the position is as outdated as the iPhone 3GS.

There are two generally held beliefs for this. First, it’s easier to succeed in today’s NFL with its passer-friendly rules. Second, quarterbacks increasingly have become professionals before they actually turn pro.

“I think the biggest reason why — and I deal with this more than anyone else in the country at the younger age groups — is they’re just so much more advanced in their learning curve,” said Trent Dilfer, an ESPN analyst and Elite 11 coach, which is a program for exceptional high school passing prospects.

“In Texas, from the time you’re 10 years old, you’re in passing camps and seven-on-seven tournaments, and teams are throwing the ball (in games). In Southern California, it’s the same way. It’s even got into Ohio and Pennsylvania and places where they never used to throw it. Florida is loaded with seven-on-seven tournaments and teams going to pass-driven offenses.

“Forever it was, ‘OK, we’re going to run the ball, and we’ll teach you to pass later.’ The guys who got the good coaching in college and the good coaching in the NFL ended up succeeding. Now it’s like every kid has the chance to learn to be a passer in junior high and then develop that in high school. Then they get to college and they choose their college based on who’s going to train them the best.”

As in, train them to give them the best chance to make the NFL. Dilfer said he sees more than a thousand young players each spring and coaches hundreds of them in the summer.

They all share a singular goal — to make it to the NFL.

“That’s what their mind is on,” said Dilfer, who played for five teams over the course of 14 seasons in the NFL, winning a Super Bowl with the Ravens in 2001. “It’s not on going to college. Their mind is on, ‘What do I need to do, where do I need to go so I can play in the NFL?’ I’m not saying it’s right; it’s the way it is.

“They throw it and throw it and throw it and throw it. These kids are throwing more balls by the time they’re sophomores in college than I probably threw my entire life going through 14 years in the NFL. They just throw it all the time. They’re not all being coached right, there’s a lot of bad coaching, but the bottom line is they’re throwing it.”

They all obviously don’t make it, but the ones that do can throw. Combine that with rules that benefit and protect offenses and you get things like Weeden (1,288) and Tannehill (1,269) passing for more yards through their first five games than all but one player in history. Newton is tops, having thrown for 1,610 last year.

And Luck being the first rookie to pass for 1,200-plus yards and win two of his four games. And Griffin leading the league with a 69.1 completion percentage, just a tick ahead of Ponder (69.0).

The NFL is overrun with passers, and it’s not a fad. It’s a trend and it shows no signs of slowing down.

Some quick hits and (hopefully) useful numbers with regard to this week’s games: The Ravens have won 13 consecutive regular-season home games and are 3-0 all-time versus the Cowboys. … The Bengals and Browns are meeting for the second time in six weeks. Cincinnati won, 34-27, on Sept. 11, making it 13 out of 16 against their intrastate rival. The Browns have lost a franchise-tying 11 straight games. … The 49ers (27-20) and Giants (20-17, OT) split a pair of meetings in San Francisco last year. … The Eagles are 3-9-1 against the number in their last 13 home games. … The Vikings defeated the Redskins, 33-26, last year in Washington. … Of the Cardinals’ last 11 wins, 10 have been by six points or less, eight by four points or less, and five have come in overtime. … The Chargers have won nine of the past 12 meetings against the Broncos. … Teams on the bye: Carolina, Chicago, Jacksonville, New Orleans. And how those coming off it have historically fared: Dallas (16-7, .696), Detroit (10-13, .435), Oakland (9-14, .391), Tampa Bay (10-13, .435).

Some random thoughts in no particular order:

•Bill Belichick’s sense of humor is drier than a Hawkeye Pierce martini. Ditto for Wes Welker, so you have to wonder what all the fuss was about — unless Belichick is the type who can dish it but can’t take it.

•The season-ending injury to All-Pro linebacker Brian Cushing won’t derail the Texans during the regular season due to their residency in the subpar AFC South. But it’ll be felt in the postseason.

•The Broncos have started 2-3, but finish up against Kansas City (twice), Tampa Bay, Oakland and Cleveland. Combined record: 3-15. Can you say playoffs?

•Which will lead to a rematch with the Patriots in January. It’s a game that will be far more competitive than the one last Sunday.

•There isn’t a more overlooked and underpublicized team in Central Mass. than the one playing field hockey at Oakmont Regional. The Spartans are 23-1-8 since the start of last season, the loss coming in the Division 2 state final.

Material used in this report was collected from personal interviews, wire services, websites, and league and team sources. Rich Garven can be contacted by email at rich.garven@verizon.net or rgarven@telegram.com.